This is Mellanox QSFP56 VCSEL-based (Vertical Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser) active optical cable (AOC) designed for use in 200Gb/s Ethernet systems. It offers high port density and configurability, and a much longer reach than passive copper cables in the data centers. Since the AOC is hot pluggable, it is easy to install and replace.
It has a standard SFF-8665 compliant QSFP56 port on the electrical side towards the host system. It contains four multi-mode fibers (MMF) optic transceivers per end, each operating at data rates of up to 50Gb/s. This cable offers selectable retiming per lane for both its optical transmitters and receivers up to 50Gbp/s rates.
Mellanox's unique quality active fiber cable solutions provide power-efficient connectivity for data center interconnects. They enable higher port bandwidth, density and configurability at a low cost, and reduced power requirement in the data centers.